The Role of Institutional Environments on Technical Efficiency: A Comparative Stochastic Frontier Analysis of Cotton Farmers in Benin, Burkina Faso, and Mali

This paper examines the role of institutional environments on cotton farmer technical efficiency scores in Benin, Burkina Faso, and Mali using a stochastic frontier production approach. First, the key institutional changes that have occurred with the recent market-oriented reforms are discussed. Then, farm efficiency per country is measured using cross-sectional data collected by the Cotton Sector Reform Project of the Africa, Power, and Politics Programme in 2009. Results from a one-stage estimation procedure suggest that while no technical inefficiency exists in Benin, an average technical efficiency of 69% and 46% is found in Burkina Faso and Mali, respectively. Agricultural development policies focusing on reducing the inefficiency at the farm level in Mali and Burkina Faso should be adopted; whereas policies designed to shift outward the production frontier seem more appropriate in Benin. Interestingly, institutional environment factors explaining variations in efficiency scores differ across countries. In Mali, farms that are food secure and that cultivate more hectares of cereals are more technically efficient in producing cotton. In contrast, Burkinabe farmers who are dissatisfied with the management of their producer organizations are more technically efficient. To be successful, efforts to promote efficiency would have to work in concert with the local realities in each country.Cotton, Technical Efficiency, Institutional Changes, Reforms, Benin, Burkina Faso, Mali, Agricultural and Food Policy, Consumer/Household Economics, Crop Production/Industries, Institutional and Behavioral Economics, International Development, Production Economics,

Novel Blood Pressure Locus and Gene Discovery Using Genome-Wide Association Study and Expression Data Sets From Blood and the Kidney.

Elevated blood pressure is a major risk factor for cardiovascular disease and has a substantial genetic contribution. Genetic variation influencing blood pressure has the potential to identify new pharmacological targets for the treatment of hypertension. To discover additional novel blood pressure loci, we used 1000 Genomes Project-based imputation in 150 134 European ancestry individuals and sought significant evidence for independent replication in a further 228 245 individuals. We report 6 new signals of association in or near HSPB7, TNXB, LRP12, LOC283335, SEPT9, and AKT2, and provide new replication evidence for a further 2 signals in EBF2 and NFKBIA Combining large whole-blood gene expression resources totaling 12 607 individuals, we investigated all novel and previously reported signals and identified 48 genes with evidence for involvement in blood pressure regulation that are significant in multiple resources. Three novel kidney-specific signals were also detected. These robustly implicated genes may provide new leads for therapeutic innovation

Changes in the Quebec Maple Syrup Industry and Economic Implications for Maine and the US

Canada and the US are the only countries that produce maple syrup with 85%, and 15% of annual production, respectively (FPAQ, NASS, 2006). Producing approximately 79% of the world\u27s maple syrup or 93% of the Canadian supply, the province of Quebec is the industry\u27s major player. While Quebec\u27s production has experienced annual fluctuations, production has followed an upward trend, especially in the 1990s. In order to sustain prices in face of increasing production, Quebec producers opted for a Sales Agency, and later, for a production quota system. Given that the US is by far the largest export market for Quebec maple syrup, implications for the Northeast maple syrup industry are important. The Northeast might be able to free ride on Quebec\u27s production quota effort in the US and to benefit from higher prices while expanding its own production. On the other hand, the Northeast industry could suffer from more aggressive competition from Quebec. To adequately understand and predict the impact of Quebec policies on the Northeast maple syrup industry, an understanding of North American price linkages and estimates of demand elasticities are needed. This research aims to better understand the past and current marketing of maple syrup, to explore the economic rationality of quotas and supply management in Quebec, and to examine their impact on the Northeast maple syrup industry. In addition, this study analyzes and reports on maple syrup consumer demand and examines the feasibility of expanding maple syrup in Maine. The analysis shows that Quebec supply control has been successful at keeping high prices and reducing carryovers. However, our results suggest that the quantity of syrup imported is too large to maximize total revenue in the US. Results also indicate that maple syrup is a luxury good, that honey is a good substitute and that demand for syrup is inelastic in the US. Given the small size of the Maine industry, producers can enjoy higher prevailing prices yet still have the option of expanding production

The Role of Institutional Environments on Technical Efficiency: A Comparative Stochastic Frontier Analysis of Cotton Farmers in Benin, Burkina Faso, and Mali

This paper examines the role of institutional environments on cotton farmer technical efficiency scores in Benin, Burkina Faso, and Mali using a stochastic frontier production approach. First, the key institutional changes that have occurred with the recent market-oriented reforms are discussed. Then, farm efficiency per country is measured using cross-sectional data collected by the Cotton Sector Reform Project of the Africa, Power, and Politics Programme in 2009. Results from a one-stage estimation procedure suggest that while no technical inefficiency exists in Benin, an average technical efficiency of 69% and 46% is found in Burkina Faso and Mali, respectively. Agricultural development policies focusing on reducing the inefficiency at the farm level in Mali and Burkina Faso should be adopted; whereas policies designed to shift outward the production frontier seem more appropriate in Benin. Interestingly, institutional environment factors explaining variations in efficiency scores differ across countries. In Mali, farms that are food secure and that cultivate more hectares of cereals are more technically efficient in producing cotton. In contrast, Burkinabe farmers who are dissatisfied with the management of their producer organizations are more technically efficient. To be successful, efforts to promote efficiency would have to work in concert with the local realities in each country

On the Institutional Details that Mediate the Impact of Cash Crops on Food Crop Intensification: The Case of Cotton

The surge in basic food commodity prices in 2007/08 and again in 2011, have led to a renewed focus among governments and donors on agricultural growth, especially in staple food production in Sub-Saharan Africa. It is widely agreed that smallholder-led agricultural growth would contribute most to improved food security and reduced poverty. Yet, how to achieve broader and more sustainable access by smallholder farmers to productivity enhancing inputs for food crop production remains a largely unsolved riddle. In light of the great institutional diversity across cotton sectors in Sub-Saharan Africa, this study investigates whether cotton market structures can be used to spur the intensification of smallholder food production. Especially, it examines how the particular institutional structure of a cotton sector might affect its ability to spur such growth in food crop intensification and productivity. With this aim, a conceptual framework linking cotton institutional structures to food crop intensification is first developed. Drawing on the literature, country experience is then reviewed and predictions from the conceptual framework are compared with empirical evidence

John R. Commons and the Evolution of Institutions: The Case of the Malian Cotton Sector

Applying John R. Commons institutional economic framework, this paper analyzes the evolution of the key institutions in the Malian cotton sector starting with the CFDT contract following the country‘s Independence in 1960; the nationalization of the cotton gin company, CMDT, in 1974; the completion of a vertically integrated market structure from the mid-1980s to mid-1990s; and, finally, to the current state of the market-oriented reforms in 2010. In accordance with John R. Commons’ economic theory, institutional changes in the Malian cotton sector have led to both intended and unintended consequences impacting economic performance at the farm, gin, and State levels, which in turn, has contributed to the emergence of new limiting factors. At present, the limiting factors to desired economic performance in the Malian cotton sector are: the lack of adequate extension services, high rates of indebtedness at both farmer and cooperative levels, difficulty in farming in an integrated system due to the limited access to cereal inputs on credit, low yields, delays in payment, and discordance between farmers and their union‘s leaders. Based on these findings, policy recommendations to revitalize the Malian cotton sector are drawn

Maize Yield Response to Fertilizer under Differing Agro -Ecological Conditions in Burkina Faso

Achieving food security in Sub- Saharan Africa depends on raising the productivity of smallholder farmers, and in Burkina Faso, there is no option for enhancing crop productivity other than intensification. The soils in the Sahel and Savanna of West Africa are old, deep and poor in soil organic matter, with low capacity to retain nutrients, while this region is also the most densely populated in the continent. Yet, as in other countries of Sub-Saharan Africa, the national agricultural research system formulated fertilizer recommendations during the 1970s and 1980s, but these did not, and still do not, take differing agro-ecologies into account. The heterogeneity of agro-ecological and soil conditions has led to a diversity of farming systems and cropping patterns. This heterogeneity, along with incomplete input markets, creates highly variable economic incentives for smallholder farmers